Somalia, officially the Federal Republic of Somalia, is a country in the Horn of Africa. The country is bordered by Ethiopia to the west, Djibouti to the northwest, the Gulf of Aden to the north, the Indian Ocean to the east, and Kenya to the southwest. Somalia has the longest coastline on Africa's mainland. Its terrain consists mainly of plateaus, plains, and highlands. Hot conditions prevail year-round, with periodic monsoon winds and irregular rainfall. Somalia has an estimated population of around 17.1 million, of which over 2 million live in the capital and largest city Mogadishu, and has been described as Africa's most culturally homogeneous country. Around 85% of its residents are ethnic Somalis, who have historically inhabited the country's north. Ethnic minorities are largely concentrated in the south. The official languages of Somalia are Somali and Arabic. Most people in the country are Muslims, the majority of them Sunni.
Somalia is classified by the United Nations as a least developed country, with the majority of its population being dependent on agriculture and livestock for their livelihood. The economy of Somalia is $4.918 billion by gross domestic product as of 2020. For 1994, the CIA estimated it at purchasing power parity to be approximately $3.3 billion. In 2001, it was estimated to be $4.1 billion. By 2009, the CIA estimated that it had grown to $5.731 billion, with a projected real growth rate of 2.6%. In 2014, the International Monetary Fund estimated economic activity to have expanded by 3.7% primarily. This expansion was driven by growth in the primary sector and the secondary sector. According to a 2007 British Chambers of Commerce report, the private sector has experienced growth, particularly in the service sector. Unlike the pre-civil war period, when most services and the industrial sector were government-run, there has been substantial, albeit unmeasured, private investment in commercial activities. The investment has been largely financed by the Somali diaspora, and includes trade and marketing, money transfer services, transportation, communications, fishery equipment, airlines, telecommunications, education, health, construction and hotels.
Communications in Somalia encompasses the communications services and capacity of Somalia. Telecommunications, internet, radio, print, television and postal services in the nation are largely concentrated in the private sector. Several of the telecom firms have begun expanding their activities abroad. The federal government operates two official radio and television networks, which exist alongside a number of private and foreign stations. Print media in the country is also progressively giving way to news radio stations and online portals, as internet connectivity and access increases. In 2012, a National Communications Act was also approved by Cabinet members, and 2 October 2017, the president of Somalia Finally signed the National Communications Law, and became the official Law that regulated the ICT industry. Under that Law, National Communications Authority (NCA) of the federal Republic of Somalia has been established, with board of directors and a general manager. Somalia currently is ranked first in Africa for most affordable mobile data per gigabyte and 7th in the world.
Puntland, officially the Puntland State of Somalia, is a Federal Member State in northeastern Somalia. The capital city is the city of Garoowe in the Nugal region, and its leaders declared the territory an autonomous state in 1998. Geographically to the west, Puntland lays claim to the intra-46th meridian territories that were outside European colonial rule during parts of the Scramble for Africa period.
Bosaso, historically known as Bender Cassim is a city in the northeastern Bari province (gobol) of Somalia. It is the seat of the Bosaso District. Located on the southern coast of the Gulf of Aden, the municipality serves as the region's commercial capital and is a major seaport within the autonomous Puntland state.
Garoowe is the administrative capital of Puntland in northeastern Somalia.
Qardho, also known as Gardo, is a city in the northeastern Bari region of Somalia, a district within the autonomous state of Puntland.
North Eastern Telecommunications Company is a telecommunications company established in 1993 in Bosaso, the commercial capital of Puntland an autonomous region of Somalia.
NationLink Telecom is a telecommunications firm based in Somalia.
The Economy of Somaliland largely relies on primary production and agriculture, where livestock is the main export of the country, which it ships to neighbouring Djibouti and Ethiopia, as well as to Gulf states, such as UAE, Saudi Arabia and Oman. Somaliland has a GDP per capita of $1500 and a gross domestic product GDP of $7,156,781,627 as of 2022, most of which it receives in remittances from Somalis working abroad. The COVID-19 pandemic has restricted Somaliland's trade flows with decreased demand in the agriculture sector, a significant source of tax revenue.
Between the fall of Siad Barre's government in January 1991 and the establishment of the Transitional National Government in 2006, there was no central government in Somalia. Large areas of the country such as Puntland and Galmudug were internationally unrecognized and administered as autonomous regions of Somalia, while forces in the northwest declared the Republic of Somaliland. The remaining areas, including the capital Mogadishu, were divided into smaller territories ruled by competing faction leaders. During this period, Somalia has been cited as a real-world example of a stateless society and a country with no formal legal system.
Telecommunications in Somaliland, an internationally unrecognised republic claimed by Somalia, are mainly concentrated in the private sector. A number of local telecommunications firms operate in the region, including Golis Telecom Somalia, SomCable, Somtel and Telesom.
Telecommunication Company of Iran, or TCI, is the fixed-line incumbent operator in Iran offering services in fixed telephony, DSL and data services for both residential and business customers, all throughout the country. It was established in 1971 with a new organizational structure as the main responsible administration for the entire telecommunication affairs.
Bharti Airtel Limited, commonly known as Airtel, is an Indian multinational telecommunications services company based in New Delhi. It operates in 18 countries across South Asia and Africa, as well as the Channel Islands. Currently, Airtel provides 5G, 4G and LTE Advanced services all over India. Currently offered services include fixed-line broadband, and voice services depending upon the country of operation. Airtel had also rolled out its Voice over LTE (VoLTE) technology across all Indian telecom circles. It is the second largest mobile network operator in India and the second largest mobile network operator in the world. Airtel was named India's 2nd most valuable brand in the first ever Brandz ranking by Millward Brown and WPP plc.
Dahabshiil is a Somali funds transfer company, and is the largest money-transfer business in Africa. It's headquartered in Burao, Somaliland. Formed in 2004, the firm operates from over 24,000 outlets and employs more than 2,000 people across 126 countries. It provides financial services to international organisations, as well as to both large and small businesses and private individuals. The company is also involved in community building projects in Somalia.
Bahrain has been connected to the internet since 1995, and made it readily available to its citizens. The country's domain suffix is '.bh'. A 2004 study showed a liberal filtering system is used in Bahrain, one which can be easily bypassed, however more recent events have shown more sophisticated and pervasive filtering. In January 2009, Bahrain has started blocking a vastly increased number of sites through the Information Affairs Authority (IAA). The new filtering has had a noticeable impact in internet access speeds for all traffic.
Somali Telecom Group ; (STG) is a telecommunications company based in Somalia. It was founded in 1993 in Rockville, Maryland, in the United States, by Abdirazak. Osman, Edmund L. Resor, Abdiaziz Ismail Dualeh and Luis F. George. According to the company's website's front page, it is Somalia's "first telecom service provider". STG maintains offices in 10 Somali cities; its head offices are currently located in Dubai.
Hormuud Telecom Somalia Inc. is a privately held telecommunications company based in Mogadishu, Somalia. It is the largest telecommunication company and largest private-sector employer in the country, and also Somalia's first private enterprise to be internationally ISO certified.
Ali Haji Warsame is a Somali entrepreneur, accountant, and politician. He served as the first director of management at the Port of Bosaso, and later as the chief executive officer of Golis Telecom Somalia. In 2014, he was appointed the minister of education of Puntland.
The Salaam Bank (SB) is a bank headquartered in Bosaso, the city of Bari region in North west Somalia.
